Whenever I hear about new gear, it has to do a couple things to rank on my new-technology-lust list:

Sweet industrial design

Rock the latest technology

Look awesome so that I can show it off to friends (because, really, it’s all about bragging rights)

It is small (!!)

Sound like your checklist? That’s why when you hear about a new Spectre computer, you need to pay attention. And today, we’re talking about the new Spectre13Ultrabook. (and, in case you missed it, a new Spectre x2 also showed up on the scene.)

I’ve only had limited time with this Spectre13 Ultrabook, but here’s what I can tell you right off the bat. If traveling fast and light is a big concern for you – this could be your next laptop. Its small frame (measuring…..15mm thin and weighing 3.25 pounds) stows easily into just about any bag.

I’d say this guy is razor-thin, but really, its desk pen thin. Check this quick video so you can see what I’m talking about.

That 13.3-inch Vivid HD display: An IPS Touchscreen. That screen is 221 PPI – higher than the human eye can see on a notebook…but it still looks really sharp at 2560 by 1440 pixel resolution.

Under the hood? Up to Intel Haswell Core i7 awesomeness, up to 8GB RAM and a 128 GB SSD (that you can push up to 256GB – which, apparently, is the minimum HP’s John McCarthy needs to store all his tunage). Beats Audio and NFC? Yep. And if you still want to control things with a tradition mousing surface, we got that as well. We call it, “HP Control Zone.” (Sounds intimidating, right?) There's actually a little more to it than being just a traditional track pad. A dedicated, texturized zone on either side of this superwide touch surface is made for Windows 8.1 navigation. This makes it A LOT easier to switch, snap and close apps.

Like I mentioned up top, this thing is slim and small…..the focus was on good all-around performance. You want a warhorse of a portable? We got those as well (with a new ENVY 17) but this is all about not weighing you down. And to keep you free-and-clear of charging cables, I’m told that the Spectre13 Ultrabook will run up to nine hours on a single charge. Of course, I haven’t had one to put through the paces yet – but I've been told that this is real world use, not some unrealistic, synthetic benchmark used for testing.

Come October 16th, you should see this available for ordering – starting at $999.99. For those that want to live the life of luxury, we’re also making a truffle brown genuine leather sleeve, with a soft faux-suede lining for protection. The HP Premium Leather Sleeve will be available in November starting at $89.99.

Needless to say, I’m putting this guy on my wish list.

When I get more than a few minutes with a model, I’ll drop more details on you here on the blog. In the meantime, I want to hear from you. Is this the sort of laptop that you’re looking for? What features matter most to you in a light, little laptop?